The Social Network

 Transitional Trauma Sophee Sanderson @socialsophee When COVID-19 first hit the United States and LSU announced that we would have a two week break, everyone was ecstatic. We saw it as an opportunity to finally have a break from school and to just mess around. We all expected to be back in the classrooms after a couple weeks off and after Spring Break rolled around. To our surprise, we quickly found out that we would be out of the classrooms longer than we thought. Everyone's classes suddenly transitioned to Zoom-- something I personally had never even heard of. With that, came lots of advantages and disadvantages. At first, I thought it was so nice that I didn't have to leave my house to go on campus for anything.  From March to May, school was a breeze. I didn't even have to go on Zoom for my classes because my professors just put my assignments  online. I was able to go back home way more often to see my family and I felt li...

 Contagious Creation Sophee Sanderson @socialsophee I'm sure you can remember the beginning days of COVID. Stress, confusion, fear, anxiety, boredom and COVID germs filled the air. Being strictly and suddenly confined to our homes was a weird adjustment for everyone. At first, diving into TikTok and binge watching multiple shows and movies on Netflix was ideal. It felt nice to do absolutely nothing and to finally have a break from school and work. However, being a couch potato all day eventually got old and my butt was starting to get flat.  When my friends and I had watched what felt like every series on Netflix possible, we realized it was time to find a new hobby to fill the void during our long do-nothing days. I remember we started cooking and baking more, we would spray paint everything in sight and one of my friends even ordered a paint by numbers canvas. Our creative juices were starting to flow.   I have always been a very creative person (once again, it's the p...

Plastic Surgery Photoshop Sophee Sanderson @socialsophee When Instagram was first released in 2010 and it gained popularity, my friends and I were quick to download it to see what the hype was about. Of course we thought it was the coolest app ever! It was new and hip and people were still learning how to use it. Our feeds were filled with silly pictures of our friends, pets, food and funny memes; it was a simpler time for social media. When I log onto Instagram now, it doesn't take long before I close the app. My feed is overflowing with ads, suggested posts and video reels. Now my explore page is filled with influencers and people I don't know. Where are my friends?! Of course it is expected that apps will come out with new and improved looks and features, but Instagram's whole vibe has changed over the years. The nature of Instagram used to be playful and authentic, now it feels like you have to post the perfect picture. So, who is to blame? A ...